Fixing Those Stinky Winery Websites...

So, here are the first two things I would fix on any winery web site that's missing them. The first is easy, the second, not so much:

Install analytics. If you are trying to improve the performance (by whatever measure) of your website, you can't do it without some data. If you're not trying to improve, why are you reading this?

Make it trivially easy to make changes to your website. If not, it's almost a guarantee that it will become outdated. Also, it's vritually guaranteed you can't test changes in response to the data that analytics will bring.

If you've already got these covered, please leave a comment -- you deserve some recognition!

My experience is that these two items are missing on most winery websites, i.e. the 5,000+ wineries that fight for 10 percent of US wine sales. 90% of US wine, by volume, is sold by just 30 wineries. These "top 30" wineries can devote entire teams to making sure that their Web presence is instrumented and up-to-date (although that's certainly no guarantee).

Bonus: if you've already made the two fixes above, then the third fix is to make it glaringly obvious where and how people can buy your wine. My favorite example of this used to be Anderson's Conn Valley Vineyards, but unfortunately they seemed to have redesigned their website and dropped it (dumb!). Basically, you want site visitors to easily find out:

how to buy your wines direct (online, as part of a club, by phone, by fax, or at the winery)

what stores carry your wine,

what restaurants serve your wine, and even

other outlets that carry your wine (e.g. K&L, wine.com, etc.)

Yes, it's hard to list the specifc stores and restaurants, but the better the job you do at this, the more avenues you create for potential customers to try your wine. And yes, you'd like to get the direct sale, but maybe someone is looking for a wine that you no longer have available. Piss them off, or point them somewhere that can make them a happy camper? The choice is yours, and it speaks directly to your focus on making customers happy.

Note to cult wineries: even if people can't buy your wine, it doesn't hurt to explain that clearly and politely. Unless, of course, you just want to make people feel bad for not being "in the know."

1) Make contact info dead easy to find. That should include list signup, how to make tasting appointments (or, if you don't do tasting appointments, that fact) and hours (if you have them).

2) If you sell directly, create a section which lists wines organized by some easy to understand criterion, probably grape variety. Have each category page list the wine basics (vintage, wine name, price) and link to a product page with that plus ordering info and things like tasting notes and reviews. If you have online ordering, make the Add to Cart buttons dead easy to see. If you're asking people to download an order form (sigh...), link to that form on EVERY product page and make the link easy to see.

3) don't get hung up on fancy graphics. DO use graphics that brand you, probably ones that you use in printed collateral now. Reuse your colors too. If someone's seen your label the site should reflect the same branding.

4) Be personal. WRite like you talk (within limits...). Talk about why you make wine, your approach, what you hope to achieve. Imagine you're talking to an interested visitor standing in front of you. Think about the questions people ask you when they do visit and write things that answer those.

Most of all GET STARTED. Most wineries won't. They justify this in many ways, but at the end of the day, most of them don't believe their website will help their business. Of course, if they don't put in the thought and effort to make it do so, it won't so this becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.

There is one thing that many wineries do badly, and it does not involve making major changes to their site or spending lots of time analyzing purchasing patterns.

And that is sending out email to customers that is actually wrong or confusing. You might be surprised at how many major wineries (as well as smaller ones) send out faulty emails.

I do a quick check on most of the winery emails I get. And here's what I find:

1. No landing page. The email offer sounds great, but the link in the email goes to the home page or a page that has something entirely different on it. How many potential customers will actually do a thorough search to find what they were promised?

2. An offer of, say, 30% off if a minimum quantity is met, but the site only gives you 20% when you order what they ask.

3. Email says "all our red wines on sale" yet the site has only a few on sale.

4. Offer is buy a case and get half off 2-day air shipping. You buy a case and don't get anything off shipping, or it applies only to ground shipping.

The list really goes on. And on. I would say that about 30% to 50% of winery emails I get have wrong or incomplete offers. In many instances, the resulting price is lower than what was advertised, though most have higher prices.

How difficult is it really to check your email before you send it out?

Lately, I’ve been viewing winery websites that look superb and contain all the necessary features and information. I can only surmise that they got themselves a good web designer, or that they may have read your posts. Good job, Mike!